Last Friday, the New York Post reported that Officer Gary Mausberg, of the 73rd Precinct, succumbed to cancer of the kidneys. He was 47 years old. The Patrolmen's Benevolent Association is looking into whether Mausberg's illness was the result of his service during his years at the Midtown South precinct, which was in close proximity to the World Trade Center when the air in the area was contaminated.

I travel in a lot of political circles all over the country. People that have lived through 9/11 – or around it – have a slightly different experience. We lost people we knew. We are still losing them sometimes. It is why when Joe Biden ridicules Rudy Giuliani for talking about 9/11, he doesn't realize the magnitude of how it touched New Yorkers.

I read that article and saw the headline about an officer dying and before I looked into the body of the story I did what we all do if you lived through this – or around it. I hoped I didn't know this guy. But I did. I knew Gary Mausberg. I played golf with Gary. I had beers with Gary. We lost touch when he and his ex-wife Diane got divorced, but he was as liked by his old friends as he was by his new friends and family. His wake was a sea of blue uniforms. He was a cop's cop. He was a delegate in his police union.

Gary, knowing he was dying, took to traveling and living his last year to the fullest with his wife Margaret. He even wrote his own prayer card. Three large clipboards of pictures showed Gary in the Navy; Gary at Jets games; Gary drinking beer; and Gary recently, when he seemed to have aged 30 years in a short time.

I wasn't sure – and the PBA is not sure – if 9/11 took Gary's kidneys. But nobody took his life.

I knew Gary back in the early 80's. When he was in the Navy, when he got out he always wanted to be a New York City Policeman. I am glad to see he made it. I am sorry his life ended so early. He was a great person. My deepest sympathy goes out to his family.

The New York Sun newspaper shut down its operation after six-and-a-half years of service on September 30. It existed for the most part as a Manhattan newspaper, but was available in the outer boroughs. The Sun's editorial pages skewed right of center, and was a refreshing sip of intellectualism in a city mired in homogenous news and reporting.

While it is no secret that the New York City market is not easy terrain for a conservative newspaper, but it is for that very reason that it was needed. The Sun lacked the readership base of a New York Post, and the neighborhood ownership of a paper like the Queens Ledger/Brooklyn Star. It lived to serve only a few nerdy academic conservatives, and now we miss it.

Congressman Anthony Weiner praised The Sun on the House floor. That could be seen as either crocodile tears or sincere sentiments, but regardless, Weiner was right. Newspapers can be saved. Governor Mario Cuomo saved The New York Post. It's an act of courage for a politician to save a newspaper, because it can come back to bite you.

A paper like The Sun cannot compete in a market like this – not in its recent form. But it can live as an online newspaper, with one large printed weekend edition. They should consider that. And Congressman Weiner should tell them so. It won't help him politically, but he would get some points in this column.

It also might pull in his direction some centrist city residents that might appreciate the effort. Other politicians can do this, but Weiner will be around for a long time. He'd be able to tell this story over and over again. I may regret this advice, if I turn out to somehow be right.

The Sun was a conservative voice in Manhattan when there was no other to be heard. And now, it's quiet.

p. The delicate Republican majority in the New York State Senate depends a great deal on a few races this year. In the 15th District, Senator Serphin Maltese is running hard to defend his seat against Councilman Joe Addabbo. Maltese has been campaigning with fellow Republican, Councilman Anthony Como, who too finds himself in a tough race. Como faced Elizabeth Crowley only a few months ago in a special election to replace Councilman Dennis Gallagher. He faces Crowley again.

Como held a fundraiser at Russo's On The Bay in Howard Beach last Wednesday, drawing a very large crowd. Nobody disputes the councilman's ability to raise money. On hand were staff, family of staff, and basically his core support mechanism. Although he hasn't had much time to really plant his flag in the City Council, he did manage to get a dialogue going with City Hall in regard to land use issues in his district.

Maltese spoke about how Como was a recipient of the Hal Miller Weinstein Memorial Award. This award comes from Queens District Attorney Richard Brown and is issued to outstanding new attorneys. Brown once described this award in the following words, "Each year this award is presented to a member of our first year class of assistants who most exemplifies Hal Weinstein's spirit, enthusiasm and dedication to public service. Hal touched the lives of many of us here in this office. He was one of our most promising young assistants whose warmth and friendship was felt by all of us."

Hal Weinstein was a DA that sadly lost his life in a car accident in 1992. Como won this award in 2001.

Maltese went on to say that Como "was an easy mark for anyone that needed his help."

Okay, it's a love fest between two party-mates and friends. But the fact is, Como is an easy target. He readily gives out his personal cell phone number and he answers it, which is better that most women I've dated. The problem with analyzing Como's performance is that – due to election laws – he has been forced to campaign when he would rather govern.

Both Como and Crowley can be best described by the same word: accessible. And Como is the rare politician that actually apologizes for not returning phone calls, which he often remembers to do. For his fundraiser, which had its share of well-known politicos, Como gave the stage to a band of three young men, known as Dry Clean Only. To their credit, they banged out three of their own songs, even though the audience was probably not the perfect venue.

The coming years in the city will require a City Council that understands budgets. Hopefully as we get further away from these special elections, people can get back to governing. This is a time when the pet issues candidates may count as their signature causes might have to wait. The city comes first.

It's a reminder of an honorarium speech once given by John F. Kennedy. Students were eager to hear him talk about war, peace, and a new frontier – but the president instead talked about budgeting. His point was that there is a morality in what you say “yes” to in a budget. We look for that morality, and that skill, to set the tone for the city in the next two years.